The cavern feels alive.
That is my first thought. The air carries a faint vibration like a heartbeat underground. Silver dust drifts from the ceiling in slow spirals. Everything smells electric and sharp, as if the moon itself had bled onto the stone. I take one step forward and the entire chamber reacts.
The roots move.
Not gently. Not like normal plants disturbed by wind. They shift with awareness. Thick tendrils of silver black bark slither across the ground and rise like serpents. They reach toward me with frightening purpose. Adam’s breath catches beside me, then he steps in front of me so fast I barely see the motion. His body blocks all of them. He plants his feet, muscles coiled, wolf rising so close to the surface that the air feels thicker around him.
The roots stop. Every si
